Devotions - advent dec 5

Today's devotions come to us from Goshen College.

Today's scripture comes from: Malachi 3:1-4

1"Behold, I send my messenger and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts. 2But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner's fire and like fullers' soap. 3He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the LORD. 4Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the LORD as in the days of old and as in former years.

Since I had no idea was fuller's soap was, I googled it. This is what I learned

A fuller was someone who cleaned and thickened (to make it "full") freshly-woven (usually woolen) cloth. The process involved cleaning, bleaching, wetting and beating the fibers to a consistent and desirable condition. Fuller's earth was a variety of clay that was used to scour and cleanse the cloth. Fuller's soap was an alkali made from plant ashes which was also used to clean and full new cloth. Since fullers required plenty of running water, along with the natural substances described, a fuller's field was a place where all were available for the fullers to conduct their profession. Source is the Church of God Daily Bible Study.

So God is sending a messenger who will prepare the way before him.
Christ will suddenly reappear!
But the query is....who can endure his coming? Who can stand when he appears?

Why these questions? Shouldn't we be joyful and unafraid of Christ's return?

As we read further we learn that Christ will come as "a refiner's fire and like fullers' soap". These aren't easy things to handle. They clean and they clean well. Refiner's fire is hot enough to burn off impurities. Fuller's soap is strong enough to cleanse dirty wool cloth. These are not things to mess with.

Christ comes to purify us and clean us. He will refine us like gold and silver, he will remove all the impurities from us.

That can be a scary thing. I look at my life and I consider all that God has to change in me, remove in me to make me even half way presentable....only the blood of Christ can do that for me. And that is already at work in me purifying me, making me into the holy person that God has called and declared me to be.

Ah....so though I can look upon Christ's return with some trepidaton, I know that the work he has already begun in me, will only be completed upon his return.